


Dear Diary, I'm In Love

by JudyG710



Category: Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 1991), Darkwing Duck (Cartoon 2018), DuckTales (Cartoon 2017)
Genre: M/M, assume I'm dead, offset from the timeline of my other fics, still couldn't resist writing it though, when I stop writing drakepad fics
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-06 02:23:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20283826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JudyG710/pseuds/JudyG710
Summary: Drake's latest visit to McDuck Manor reveals secrets far more valuable than treasure.





	Dear Diary, I'm In Love

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to all my friends in the drakepad discord server for throwing all this inspiration at me. Love you guys. <3

Out of all the places he thought he'd be when he was grown, the front step of the richest duck in the world's mansion was not one of them. Even more unbelievable was that this wasn't even the first time. Or the second, or third. He'd actually lost track of how many times he'd visited the manor by now, but it was enough times to know he could just walk through the door without knocking, doing just that on this most recent trip. 

"Good morning Mister Mallard." 

He looked up towards the slightly transparent butler that floated several feet above the floor to properly dust the chandelier. The fact he wasn't startled or confused by the presence of the ghost anymore also spoke to how much time he'd spent here. "Morning Duckworth! Have you seen Launchpad? He asked to meet up in the manor today." 

"I'm afraid Mister McDuck needed Mister McQuack to take him to the Bin for a sudden meeting. He should be back within the hour though," Duckworth answered, drifting over to the fireplace to clean up the chimney. 

"Ah, thanks." Damn, he'd been looking forward to seeing his <strike>crush's</strike> best friend's charming smile the moment he got there. Well, at least the manor wasn't boring-

BANG! "Yah!" He immediately ducked, narrowly avoiding the pink blur that shot itself from the ceiling. He rolled back onto his feet, fists held up in a defensive stance, facing a young duckling with a bright bow in her hair. "Morning Drake!" she chirped before running at him. 

"Morning Webby," he replied, blocking each fist and foot she threw at him. She was much stronger than she looked, something he quickly learned after his first few visits to the manor. "The boys busy?" He bent backwards as she launched herself at him, seeing her fly over him before letting his hands go to the floor so he could somersault back to his feet. 

"They're finishing breakfast. Where's Launchpad?" Webby tried to jump on him while his back was still turned, but he turned and caught her under the arms, swinging around to slow her momentum. 

"He had to take your uncle somewhere apparently. Duckworth said he'd be back within the hour." He let her wiggle out of his grip and didn't move when she back-flipped over him, landing on his back. He hooked his arms under her legs and felt her grab his shoulders. A smile lit his bill as he started walking with his little passenger. "Got anything big planned for today?" 

She gently kicked her feet, and he could feel the excited smile on her face. "Yes! Violet's going to come over and help me go over all my research on the Clan McDuck! Lena's gonna be with us too, but she's not as interested in research, so we'll do something she wants to do too! I'm so excited for it; Violet's always ready to learn something new with me, and I'm always excited to learn more from Lena too!" 

The ex-actor chuckled quietly. "It's great that you've got such good friends. Are the boys going to join you girls at all?" 

"I already asked if they wanted to, but they didn't seem too enthusiastic about it." 

"Well, at least you've got Lena and Violet, and there's still the whole day ahead of you guys! Maybe they'll join you after all." He made it to the kitchen just in time for said boys to finish their morning meal.

Dewey looked up from the table and smiled. "Hey Drake! Where's Launchpad?" 

He snorted, ruffling the middle triplet's hair. "He's driving your uncle to the Bin. We're not joined at the hip you know." Not like he wouldn't enjoy that though... but that was neither here nor there.

"I know," Dewey retorted, "but I never see you without Launchpad. I mean, I see him by himself a bunch, or with that Darkwing guy in the papers, but you? I only ever see you with Launchpad, so I dunno, it's kinda weird that he's not here with you." 

"Well, he'll be back soon apparently, so we don't have to wait that long for him."

"I can't believe you're as chill as you are about Launchpad spending so much time with Darkwing Duck without you. Wasn't that kinda your role before Uncle Scrooge canceled the movie?" 

Oh the oddities of leading a double life. "It's not that bad, actually. I get to spend a fair amount of time with Darkwing Duck too. I just don't have the sleep schedule to try helping him at night like Launchpad can." 

Huey blinked, head tilting curiously. "What, really? If you spend so much time with Darkwing, how come you don't talk about him as much as you talk about Launchpad? Do you love Launchpad or something?" he teased. 

Drake's face got warm, but he fought to keep the blush from showing through his feathers. He shook his head vehemently. "W-what? No! Launchpad's my best friend is all. Won't be anything more than that, no matter how much I want it to be mor-" _Oh shit._

The oldest triplet gasped, bouncing on his heels. "Oh my gosh! You totally are in love with Launchpad!" 

"Oh ho, sucks for you then," Louie remarked, and Drake was still trying to learn if he was actually being sympathetic or not. 

"Buh? What's that supposed to mean?" the vigilante asked, forgetting his embarrassment for a moment. 

"Dude, it's so obvious that Launchpad is head over heels in love with Darkwing Duck. He hangs out with him every night, risking his life to help him with fighting crime, even though I'm pretty much convinced he's immortal. He doesn't stop talking about him during the day and even writes about him in his diary!" 

"Launchpad has a diary?" "You read his diary?" Clearly Drake and Huey had different priorities, but the fact LP had a diary was... actually it wasn't all that surprising, but it was adorable as all get-out. Then his brain caught up completely with what Louie had said. "Wait wait wait, more important question: Launchpad has a crush on Darkwing Duck?"

The triplets and Webby all confirmed this in various states of sympathy. Louie added, "Seriously, how have you not noticed?" 

"... So like... not the TV show character, but the actual one?" There's seriously no way that was true. Launchpad really couldn't have a crush on him of all people. Louie must've misunderstood or something, he couldn't get his hopes up-

"The one he goes out patrolling with? Yes. I can go get his diary and show you. It's totally embarrassing," he chuckled. 

"Uh, no, I'll uh... take your word for it." Drake was pretty sure his brain broke. Launchpad had a crush on him. On him! Drake Mallard! It took everything to keep his composure and not start jumping up and down and giggling with glee. "Though... what exactly does he say about Darkwing?" He was too curious, and maybe part of him wanted some evidence that LP really did mean him. 

Huey put his hand up in front of Louie before he could answer. "Um, are you sure you want to hear that? 'cause I mean... there's a lot to cover on that front, and it's about someone who's... not you." 

Thank god he was an actor. He sighed softly, shoulders drooping a bit though not enough to drop Webby. "It's uh, not ideal, but... I'd like to know what about him attracted Launchpad I guess?" 

"What didn't?" the green triplet remarked, all too ready to potentially embarrass his friend. "He's always talking up how fit the guy is whenever he tells us about some of the fights they've gotten in, so we know he's been checking him out." Drake hoped the kids couldn't see him blushing at that. 

"He talks about how in-sync they are a bunch too. And he thinks all those cheesey intros are clever and will bring up literally anything Darkwing's said at any time for absolutely no reason. It's usually completely out-of-context with whatever conversation we were having beforehand." 

"He just goes on about everything," Dewey added. "How he brave he is, how much he likes talking to him, how fancy his hair is-" 

"Fancy?" A hand went to his head; what was so special about his hair? Especially compared to LP's long red locks! Man he'd love to run his hand through- _not the time! Focus!_ He tuned back in to hear Webby joining in on the conversation. 

"Launchpad's really dedicated to him and his secret identity too. No matter how hard I try to grill him for answers, he won't talk." Drake wasn't sure he liked the ominous tone in her voice, but he was grateful LP kept his secret so well, even from the kids. "Oh! I actually watched him write once when I was doing my routine vent crawl! You know he talks when he writes?" she asked, peeking around Drake's shoulder to look at him. "It wasn't difficult to figure out he was writing about Darkwing Duck." 

"Really? What was he writing then?" 

She straightened again and cleared her throat. " 'Just got back from patrol with DW. We stopped a jewel thief tonight! It was pretty quiet other than that, so we got a lot of time to talk about stuff. I feel bad because I forgot to listen for a minute. I just couldn't stop staring at him, the way his hands waved around as he talked, the way he smiled with those cute dimples appearing, the way the moon sparkled in his eyes...'

" 'I've never felt so worried to tell someone how I feel before. I've had several partners in the past, and while I've loved them all, none of them have made me feel like this. Like I'm crashing head over heels every time I see him. Like every time we're close, the world gets calm and quiet and everything is just... right. I need him like I need to be a pilot. I just can't picture my life going on without either of those things. ... And maybe that's why I'm scared to tell him. I can't stand the thought of losing his friendship, losing him, becoming another tick on my list of people I've driven away (not literally, I know I'm a driver and all, but I mean emotionally).' 

" 'Maybe one day I'll be as courageous as he is, and tell him how I feel about him'." Drake flinched at Webby's sudden squeal of joy, also making out Huey cooing, Dewey groaning, and Louie laughing. "I didn't know Launchpad was so poetic! I had to crawl away quickly to cry so I wouldn't give myself away," she laughed sheepishly, fanning her face with her hand like she was trying not to cry again.

He definitely needed to do that himself, his heart having leapt to his throat and tears threatening to fall. He never knew Launchpad felt that way... And all this time, they could've been dating! He needed to talk to Launchpad, right now! He needed to tell him exactly how he felt and maybe kiss the big lug senseless, and- 

"Whoa Drake, are you going to be okay?" Huey asked, pulling on his arm when he'd started swaying. "Maybe we shouldn't have said anything." Webby hopped down when her friend pulled Drake into a chair, still looking a bit dazed. 

He shook his head to clear it. "A-ah, no, no that's fine. Thank you for telling me, really. I-I needed to hear it... Um... would you guys mind not telling Launchpad you told me any of this? This was very personal, and you really had no place to be reading his diary or eavesdropping on him." Even if he wanted to go out and get each of them several presents for telling him something he absolutely needed to hear. 

"You sure you're gonna be okay?" Dewey asked, concerned and skeptical. 

Drake was definitely more than okay! But he should handle this carefully. He couldn't actually say anything to Launchpad with the kids around without giving away his identity. ... Though, perhaps Launchpad would get to tell Darkwing Duck how he felt after all... 

"Yeah... yeah, I'll be fine," he sighed, silently grinding his heel into his other foot to keep from smiling like the love-struck idiot he was. 

They all jumped when the door suddenly burst open, and the topic of conversation walked in. "Hey guys! Drake, you're here!" It took literally everything not to pounce on Launchpad that very minute. "Sorry I wasn't here, Mister McDee had a meeting. Looks like you've been busy though!" 

He managed a little grin and a nod. "Yeah, everyone here is great company." He stood up and joined his friend, nearly collapsing into a puddle when LP engulfed his shoulder with his hand. 

"Awesome! Do you guys want to hang out with us then?" 

Huey shook his head as he started herding his siblings out of the kitchen. "Nah, we've got quite a lot planned today! Gonna help Webby research the family and all!" Drake chuckled as Webby gave an excited gasp and his brothers simultaneously groaned. "You two have a good time though!" he called before they all left. 

"Huh... Well, just you and me then!" Launchpad chirped, gently squeezing his shoulder. 

Drake's smile brightened. "Yeah, just me and you." 

~~~  
That night, the pair was out on patrol, looking for trouble to stop, for criminals to fight, for villains to vanquish! Or at least, one of them was. Drake was sincerely wishing that it would be another quiet night, nothing to do, no one to mess with. He wanted to focus solely on his partner, get his act together, quite literally. It was something he'd been thinking about since that morning in McDuck Manor, and with the knowledge he now had, he wouldn't be chickening out again. 

They'd left the Ratcatcher in an alley and climbed up to the roof of Duckburg's tallest office building. It gave them a great vantage point but also let them relax until something happened. Things had been silent for the first couple hours, nothing happening on the streets, and nothing happening on the police scanners they listened in on. 

It was now or never. 

"Hey Launchpad?" Darkwing started casually, relaxing from his Hero Pose™ and looking at the pilot. 

Said pilot glanced down at him. "Yeah DW?" 

This was going to come right out of left field, but he hoped LP was too preoccupied with the topic to question the abruptness of it. "You know I've liked Darkwing Duck since I was a kid, right?" 

"Of course! You've still got your lunchbox with the dent of your face in it after all." 

"Right. Well... You know, it didn't just help me be more courageous and resilient. It actually helped me figure out a few things about myself." This was incredibly embarrassing, but if anyone could understand, it would be Launchpad. And it was all leading up to the main event anyway. "Back in college, I uh... I actually realized I had a bit of a crush on Darkwing Duck... I'd gone from just admiring him as a fan to his hero to admiring him as a man to another man..." He chanced a glance back up at his friend, seeing he had Launchpad's undivided attention. 

"Really?" 

"Yeah, yeah really," he chuckled, blushing a bit. "I'd always wondered... I'd always wondered what it would've been like to kiss him." He slowly inched toward his partner. "Have you ever thought of that?" 

LP blinked, and Drake was sure he could see a faint blush appearing. "Buh?" 

He turned completely to him, his heart thundering in his ears as he reached up and gently squeezed one of those large arms the size of his head. Launchpad had also helped him figure out he had a thing for guys larger than him, though perhaps that could've just been an attraction to Launchpad.

"Have you ever wondered what it would be like to kiss Darkwing Duck?" He was almost chest-to-chest with him now, or rather, chest-to-beak. He hoped he was keeping his composure and looking as suave as he thought he did. 

His friend was definitely blushing now, bill opening and closing as he tried to speak, but words seemed to stop working for him. Eventually, he managed to clear his throat and stutter out, "Y-yeah, I-I guess I have, once or twice..." 

Drake reached up and grabbed his tie, steadily pulling the man down closer to him. "Would you like to find out?" 

Launchpad's jaw dropped, his face burning bright red and his eyes sparkling. And they stood there, neither making a move, and Drake began to worry that he'd gotten this whole thing wrong. He shouldn't have done this; the kids had set up an elaborate prank on him; he needed a hole to open up beneath him and swallow him-

Then he felt large hands on his shoulders, bringing him impossibly closer to the warm body in front of him. He could feel LP's breath on his bill, and his heart jumped in anticipation. 

_"Units, we've got a break-in at Cali's Corner Shop on 87th and 91st. Unconfirmed total of four armed suspects spotted inside."_

The two jumped back at the sudden voice in their ears, Drake putting a hand to his bill to keep a startled oath from escaping. They stared at each other, hearts hammering from what almost was, and Drake, in particular, wanted to throw a fit for the missed opportunity. 

Instead, he sighed and turned towards the stairs. "W-we should go take care of that." 

He didn't hear anything for a moment until rapid footsteps caught up with him. "R-right, yeah, let's go stop 'em DW!" Launchpad replied cheerfully, though Drake had a feeling it was a little forced. 

They hopped down to the street and climbed onto the Ratcatcher, revving the engine before speeding off towards the convenience store on the corner in the process of being robbed. 

It took no time at all getting there, arriving long before any police even responded to the dispatcher. No wonder a vigilante and his partner were needed to get the crime rate down. The 24-hour store was brightly lit, letting the crime fighters see a couple people raiding and trashing the inside and the cashier cowering behind the counter. 

Drake and Launchpad shared a look and nodded, their previous moment set on the back burner to focus on the crime at hand. Darkwing tossed a smoke bomb towards the front door, a cloud of purple smoke billowing around the entryway. "I am the terror that flaps in the night! I am the unpaid overtime on villainy's timecard! I am... Darkwing Duck!" He flung his cape out, the motion dispersing the rest of the smoke to reveal himself. "Return your burgled bucks, bites, and baubles from this bodega and surrender, criminals!" 

"Shit! What is he doing here?!" one of the robbers hissed at another. Drake's eyes scanned the shop, seeing only four masked criminals like the scanner had reported, but there could be more in the back. Two were holding up the cashier and getting whatever they could from the register, the other two grabbing what they could get from the shelves. This would be a bit more difficult with them spread out like that...

"Wherever crime goes, I follow, ready at a moment's notice to put a stop to it! Now, are you going to come quietly, or are we going to get dangerous?" 

"Wait a second, we have weapons, you idiots!" one of the masked burglars reminded his cohorts, pointing his gun at the vigilante, the other three following his lead. 

Well, that was never a fun sight... But Darkwing Duck would not be cowed into submission! "Have it your way, crooks! Let's get dangerous!" He ducked behind a line of shelves, hearing the startled criminals start shooting where he'd been standing. He swerved through some of the shelves before jumping up and kicking the gun out of one's hand and knocking him off balance. 

DW ducked down again, wincing as a bullet grazed his shoulder, enough to cut the skin, but not anything more than that. He grabbed a box of soda cans and held it up like a shield as he charged towards the criminal that had dashed across the store to ambush him. He tossed the heavy box at him, rolling to the side before hopping back onto his feet and uppercutting the man, sending him tumbling back. 

Bullets kept whizzing by, making him dive for cover again. Drake thanked anything that would listen that these guys were amateurs and only managed one graze so far. That didn't mean they couldn't get a lucky shot in if he wasn't careful though. 

Then the bullets stopped. "Wait a second. Doesn't he have a partner?" he heard one of the remaining burglars ask. 

He smirked, hearing his partner just a second later. "Looking for me guys?" He peeked around the shelf in time to see Launchpad grab the two and knock their heads against each other before letting them drop to the floor. Said partner noticed him and beamed, throwing a thumbs up. "Employees are safe with the police outside, and there aren't anymore burglars in the building." 

"Great job LP!" Darkwing commented. "Now let's-" Time slowed to a crawl as he spotted one of the burglars he'd thought he'd taken care of earlier standing behind Launchpad with his gun pointed at the pilot. Without thinking twice about it, his hand grabbed a soda can from the floor and chucked it across the store. 

The can connected with the assailant's head, startling him long enough for Darkwing Duck to swerve around Launchpad and tackle the man to the ground. "Not on my watch pal!" He then pulled his fist back and slammed it hard into his face, the criminal slumping over, unconscious in an instant. 

"... DW?" The vigilante took a moment to breathe, the adrenaline leaving his system, before looking back at his partner. "You okay?" 

He sighed and nodded. "Yeah... yeah, I'm okay. Are you?" He suddenly found himself lifted up and pulled close to a firm, warm body. 

"I'm great thanks to you! You moved so quick; I blinked, and you were behind me! And you knocked that guy out with one punch! That was phenomenal!" 

Drake chuckled. "Well what about you? You got the employees out without drawing any attention to yourself, and that one-liner when the burglars wondered where you were? Ugh, I wish I could be that witty! I couldn't do this without you, LP!" 

He was super happy to see Launchpad's smile at that, and suddenly, he was pulled even closer and had Launchpad's mouth pressed against his. His heart stopped right then and there. Drake practically melted, his eyes slipping shut and his hands coming up to cup his partner's face and keep the kiss going. 

There was no telling how long they stood there, kissing the daylights out of each other, but they eventually pulled away when their burning lungs screamed for air. They remained there, DW still nestled contently in LP's arms, both catching their breath and gazing at each other with such desire and adoration. 

Launchpad then smiled. "So... turns out kissing Darkwing Duck is pretty damn great." 

Drake blushed but smiled, giggling a little as he nuzzled his partner's bill. "Kissing Launchpad McQuack is pretty damn great too." 

"Awww..." They glanced back at the lone conscious burglar, who was contently watching them from where he'd fallen on the floor. "Oh, sorry, don't mind me!"

Launchpad set the vigilante down, each blushing darkly as they finished taking care of the robbers, delivering them to the police outside. After making sure everything was taken care of, they returned to the Ratcatcher and drove off in contemplative silence. 

Things seemed to quiet down again by the time they found somewhere to park and stand guard for the rest of the night. The bike was safely hidden before they made their way to the roof again, silent all the way. Drake wondered what exactly they would do now, if they were going to talk or if the night was going to continue with somewhat-awkward silence. He was rather hoping they could go back to kissing.

Once they reached the top, Launchpad gently took Drake's hand, looking down at him with a sheepish but loving smile. Darkwing was pretty sure the other could see his heart thumping through his chest now. 

"So uh... would you like to go out sometime? Kissing Darkwing Duck was wonderful, but I'd also like to know what it's like to kiss Drake Mallard."

Drake beamed, squeezing Launchpad's hand like a lifeline. "How does tomorrow afternoon sound?" He found himself lifted off his feet again, brought perfectly close to the taller's face. 

"Sounds perfect." And they engaged in their second kiss of the evening, Launchpad's arms engulfing his partner's body as Drake's wrapped around his pilot's neck, fingers tangling in his bright hair. They could've stayed that way all night; Drake wanted nothing more. 

Although... 

"Launchpad? You uh, might want to find a better hiding spot for your diary..."


End file.
